


Share a smoke, and a soul

by empathy13



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: M/M, Recreational Drug Use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-18 19:05:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13106577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/empathy13/pseuds/empathy13
Summary: While staying at the loft, Jace witnesses a sweet moment between Alec and Magnus.





	Share a smoke, and a soul

Jace would know the smell of marijuana anywhere. He’s a New Yorker, mundanes smoke weed all over this city. He’s never tried it himself, preferring to get his kicks from copious amounts of alcohol; but he doesn’t consider himself a judgmental person either. Which is why it's with equal parts intrigue and amusement, that he follows the distinctive odor in Magnus’s loft.

He’s been a guest here for a few weeks now. Enjoying the fine linens, open balcony, and free alcohol he’s surrounded by. And despite Alec and Magnus giving him annoyed glances occasionally, Jace really _is_ trying to give them their privacy. Which is why he leaves the loft every night at around nine o'clock to give the couple some alone time. But tonight he'd grown bored quite quickly, and found himself returning back to his temporary home an hour later. As soon as he opened the front door, he could smell the weed. 

The music thrumming from beneath the master bedroom door is Amy Winehouse. Her raspy voice is singing about knowing she’s no good, and Jace knocks very lightly on the door. When no response comes, he finds himself turning the doorknob to enter the bedroom without permission. The room is mostly dark, a few candles glowing on top of an antique bureau, and a bedside lamp casting enough light to move around the room safely. Most of the light in the room is coming from the half open pocket door that leads to the master bathroom. The sound of music, the smell of marijuana, and the distinctive sounds of two men laughing are what draws Jace to the bathroom door.

He’s fully aware that he’s being a nosy little shit at this moment. But cockiness has always been his fallback attitude, and letting himself into another couple’s bedroom is almost poetic for a man that likes to jab his nose at propriety and following rules. From this vantage point, he’s able to take in the full scene of the master bathroom. Magnus is in an extravagant marble tub, located in the center of the room like a throne. A thick layer of bubbles covers the water, and along the tub edge stands an ashtray with a lighter in it. Magnus is holding a joint between his fingers, and smiling with wrinkled eyes at Alec.

Jace prides himself on knowing Alec better than anyone else. He is his parabatai, brother, and best friend. They literally share a piece of one another’s souls. Yet, it felt as though Jace’s brain was struggling to piece together the information his eyes were taking in. Alec is proper. Alec is a rule follower. He’s a leader. Alec is…well…a goody goody. Right?! Wrong, was the apparent answer. The clean-cut, obedient persona that Jace had associated with Alec their whole life together was being turned on its axis right now. Because before his very eyes, his predictable and well behaved brother was taking a large hit from a smoking bong.

Alec was sitting on the floor, back settled against the cabinetry of the sink. He was wearing a tank top and soft cotton sleep pants. His bare feet were stretched out before him, idly tapping along to the beat of the music. As he pulled the bong away from his lips, he held the smoke in his lungs for a few seconds, then blew it up into the air above him. The bathroom fan was on, but doing very little to clear the air of the smell and smoke. “So then,” Alec began speaking, “the cats started surrounding me and the spilled strawberry jam like I’d just broken a jar of catnip on the kitchen floor. I’ve been assaulted by hordes of shax demons that were less aggressive then your cats were while I was trying to push them out of the way to towel up the mess.”

Magnus laughs loudly and leans forward in the tub, curling in on himself in true joy. “Oh Alexander, how I wish I had been there to witness you battling the quick paws of my feline friends. Whilst I’ve always claimed that cats are sweethearts, truly I know that they can be quite nasty when food is at stake.”

“No kidding,” Alec replies with a smile, setting down the bong and holding one of his arms out to show off a fresh set of scratches that blemish his skin. 

“Oh Darling, I can clear those marks up with no problem,” Magnus replies with a finger snap that brings blue lights to glow around his left hand.

“No, no, no…” Alec mumbles while sliding himself forward on the bathroom floor. He pulls his body to line up next to the tub, reaching his arm out to touch Magnus’s shoulders. “These scratches are not worth wasting magic. They will be cleared up in a few days.”

Magnus brings the joint he’s been holding up to his lips, taking a long drag and holding in the smoke. Alec smiles at him and leans forward, meeting his lips and bringing his other hand up to cradle his lover’s cheek while they kiss. When he pulls back, both he and Magnus blow some of the smoke they’ve just shared between their mouths into the air. Alec dips his fingers into the bathwater and leans back, reaching for his bong, touching the embers and wetting them out. When it’s no longer burning, he opens the cabinet and puts the bong beneath the sink. He reaches to turn the volume down low on the music. Then he directs his attention back to Magnus, allowing his body to lean on the side of the tub. “How was your day? Did your client meetings go well?”

“Yes, my meetings went smoothly. My second client was quite amusing, she’s a housewife with four kids under the age of ten in her household. She asked me if I could conjure her a spell that would tidy up her house every evening before she went to bed.”

Alec laughed and nodded his head, “That actually does sound like a pretty handy spell.” 

“Right?! I was delighted when she described to me her desire for dishes to wash themselves like in a Disney cartoon.”

They both laughed at that. Alec took the joint from his lover’s hand and took a hit, then held it up to Magnus’s lips while he took a hit as well.

“Once I kindly explained to her that my magic doesn’t work quite as easily as she sees in the movies, we settled on a decent price, and I put a repeating spell on her home that would restore it to a more organized state every night while her family slept.”

“That’s so cool,” Alec told him with admiration in his voice.

“Thank you love,” Magnus leaned forward to kiss Alec’s lips quickly. “The organization spell should put her mind at more ease, freeing up time for her family, which is so important…And the new dishwasher I magicked into her kitchen should allow her a bit less time spent at the kitchen sink,” Magnus laughed as he related the last part.

Jace found himself stepping backwards away from the bathroom. The couple hadn’t spotted him yet, and he was feeling guilty for his nosiness. This was a private moment. A private secret. Apparently smoking weed and unwinding together was a private ceremony Alec and Magnus enjoyed sharing. Unbidden, a feeling of sadness was growing in his brain. His mind was flashing back to his life with Valentine. Growing up wishing for love and instead feeling pain. Being told that to love was to destroy. 

It was moments like this that he hated Valentine the most. Moments when evidence of the grace and strength of love made all of his childhood ‘lessons’ so clearly lies no child should ever be told. He’d been raised by a monster...and it brought pain that would forever leave a veil on him that couldn’t be ripped off. But seeing Magnus and Alec together, seeing their joy, it allowed a flicker of hope to build in Jace’s chest.

“How did Jace seem this morning while I was at work?” Jace heard Alec’s voice softly ask. He paused in his retreat, leaning back in to hear what the couple said about him behind closed doors.

“He’s still struggling,” Magnus said with sadness in his voice. “He’s a strong man, with so much loyalty in his heart; but the return of Valentine, and that asshole Victor Aldertree have opened up years of insecurity in your Parabatai.” 

“I know, it’s killing me to see him struggle like this,” Alec replied quickly. “If I could kill Aldertree and be certain I’d never get caught, I have to admit I’d be pretty damn tempted to do it.”

“Oh Darling, if I thought we could get away with it I’d help you destroy Aldertree at this very moment.”

An amused sound escapes Alec’s lips. “Hmmm…maybe not this exact moment. This is our time of night,” Alec said, a softness was back in his voice.

Jace could hear the sounds of kissing, the noise of bathwater moving as bodies shifted to lean into one another. He could hear one of them, _Alec?_ , humming into the kiss. Then a return hum filled the room as well. A lover’s conversation had with words in their minds, passed back and force through the hum of voice boxes. He could feel their Parabatai bond thrumming beneath his skin. He could feel the contentment in Alec’s body. It was a contentment that had been absent for so many years… 

“Perhaps the three of us should go out for a nice lunch tomorrow afternoon,” Magnus suggested. “Some fresh air and time with us will be good for Jace; it will help him to feel our love surrounding him.”

“Yeah, that’s a really good idea. I think we’re on the right track here, Magnus. The more he tries to fight us and act out, I think we just have to keep fighting back with affection and showing him that we’re not going to ever give up.”

“Darling, he knows that you would never give up on him. You have always made it known that your love for your family is endless.”

“I hope he knows,” Alec says with doubt in his voice that makes Jace feel a pang of sadness. “I spent so many years thinking that I was in love with him, and hating myself for thinking it, that I know at times I was pushing him away in the process.”

“Alexander,” Magnus said firmly. “Jace is your Parabatai. Even when the two of you disagree, he will always know that you support and love him, just as you have felt his love in return.”

He can hear Alec letting out a relieved sigh. Jace peaks back in to see Magnus caressing his parabatai’s cheek while Alec takes a deep drag from the joint. Alec closes his eyes and leans into Magnus’s touch. Magnus begins to card his fingers through Alec’s hair, massaging his scalp. A few moments pass this way, silence filling the calmness of the room. Alec takes another hit of the joint, and reaches it out towards Magnus’s direction.

“Thanks love, but I think I’ve had enough for this evening.”

Alec opens his eyes, and grins serenely at Magnus, then he takes one more hit from the joint, and carefully snuffs it out in the ashtray. Magnus uses his magic to open the cabinet under the sink, and sends the ashtray floating in to sit beside Alec’s bong. As the cabinet door shuts, Alec leans forward to turn the hot water on into the tub, refreshing the bubbles that surround his lover. A large burst of blue light bursts from Magnus’s fingertips, and a quick breeze of air speeds through the loft. Immediately Jace notices that the scent of weed and smoke is gone. The loft smells clean, if not faintly of sandalwood as well. _‘So this is how they keep their pot smoking a secret,’ Jace thinks with an amused grin._

“How was your training today, Darling? Is Clary learning as quickly as we’d hoped?” 

“She’s doing amazing, actually. I want to invite her over for a special dinner soon to tell her how much I appreciate all that she’s done for us, and for the institute.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea, Alec. Perhaps I could magic in some pasta from this wonderful place I know in Tuscany. The owner is an adorable older woman, she’s got these beautiful locks of brown hair-”

Jace backs away from the bathroom, turning around to quietly exit the bedroom, making sure to softly close the door behind him. His chest feels warm and his eyes are damp. He’s never seen affection of that sincerity with his own eyes before. He could feel the love in the loft like rain on his skin. He thought of every morning coming into a kitchen brewing fresh coffee and muffins from Alec’s favorite bakery. He pictured the way Alec diligently greeted each cat by name when he’d pass them in the loft, knowing that they were beloved to Magnus. 

Seeing the way Alec and Magnus took care of each other, and the way they discussed taking care of others, was astounding to Jace. That Alec had found someone to match his capacity for love and protectiveness was surely a gift from the Angels. The past few months had shown growth and happiness in Alec that Jace hadn’t even known possible for his brother. As he stepped into the living room, Jace made a mental note to begin finding ways to show his appreciation to Magnus. He felt a newfound kinship to the Warlock that was protecting his Parabatai’s soul just as fiercely as Jace always would.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are always appreciated. Have a wonderful day!!


End file.
